Milly Snow
Milly Snow '''(full name: Malery Snow) was the natural born daughter of Arsa Stark, only daughter and youngest child of Lord Brandon Stark and Lady Alys Karstark. Milly grew up without knowing who her father was. Rumour has it that she was the seed of a rape her mother suffered from the hands of a Bolton at the Tourney of Riverrun, hence the moniker Little Lady Dreadfort. Spending half of her childhood on Bear Island, where men and women were trained at arms to fend for themselves, the idea of a girl wielding a weapon was natural to Milly. She later would be the wielder of the Valyrian bastard sword Griever. It was given to her by Prince Baelor Targaryen. After her mother died, Milly was sent to Winterfell under the protection of her lord grandfather. It was there that she met and fell in love with the boy called Bael the Bookworm. Milly was a member of The Golden Company. She was a fearsome swordswoman and rose through the ranks to serjeant. She was posthumously known as “The Sword of Sorrow”. '''Biography Part I: The Winter Orphan Birth One blustery night, at an inn at the crossroads, the rain was pouring nonstop, the gusty wind was banging on the inn’s sign. A child’s cry tore through the noise of the clanking sign and the raindrops on the rooftop like a small thunder. Lady Arsa Stark received the wailing babe from the maester. The babe had a puff of black hair, and on her right palm, she had a red birthmark that made it look like she was holding a ball of fire. She was a tiny little thing in Arsa’s arms, as she was born prematurely. But the cry howling from her chest told Arsa she would be good and healthy. With beads of sweat staining on her head from the hard labour, she looked down on her babe and smiled. A shadow lingered at the door for a moment and then disappeared. Days later, Lord Brandon Stark arrived. He asked Arsa where the babe’s father was and received no reply. Arsa gave the babe to Lord Brandon to hold, telling him the girl had blue eyes just like her lord grandfather. As he took the babe in his arms and saw her face, he almost gave her away to a villager had it not been for Arsa's sobbing and begging. Finally, he relented and sent mother and babe to Bear Island, the seat of Lady Alys’s nephew. Bear Island At Bear Island, little Milly was not loved by her uncle, Lord Orran Mormont. But to her, for 8 years, Bear Island with her mother in it was her home. Then one day, Lady Arsa died of a swift and violent sickness. Before she died, she was able to send a raven to her lord father, asking him to take care of little Milly, and to tell her who her father was when she came of age. So at the age of 8, in 198 AC, Milly travelled to Winterfell with her mother’s coffin to be buried down in the crypt. There at Winterfell, she met her lord grandfather and the little prince for the first time. Winterfell When the Blackfyre Rebellion broke out in 196 AC, Prince Valarr Targaryen, heir to the Iron Throne, was 7. Both his father and grandfather were leading the Targaryen army. The master of whisperers, Lord Brynden Rivers, advised that the boy was sent to Winterfell to be fostered. He could be safely tucked away, and the Targaryen side could gain support from the North. It was also promised that Valarr would be betrothed to one of Lord Brandon’s grandaughters when he came of age. But before that, no one was to know who he was. So to everyone in Winterfell, save for Lord Brandon, his heir Beron and his maester, Valarr was Bael Ryder, one of the last survivors of the extinct House Ryder. At Bear Island, people sometimes called Milly “Little Lady Dreadfort”, since it was rumoured that she was the seed of a rape her mother suffered from the hands of a Bolton. Sometimes Milly wondered if that was the reason her uncle did not love her, as he had no love for the Boltons either. But since the day Lord Brandon received the angry and sullen child at his halls, he’d never allowed that name to be uttered. He saw Arsa’s wild spirit in Milly, and raised her as any legitimate child. One day, in the training yard, Milly swung a wooden sword at her cousin’s head. Errold Stark had said that she was small for an 8 year-old. She replied that one day she would be as tall as the Wall. Errold then said Robyn Bolton had not been tall. The bleeding bigger boy was about to charge at Milly when Bael intervened. At first, Bael thought Milly was a hot-headed and insolent child. Milly herself was equal parts annoyed and intrigued by the mellow silver-tongued boy and oft times pulled pranks on him. Later, Bael, Milly and Errold became an inseparable trio. While Milly and Errold dreamed of knights and valour, Bael was more fascinated with books and history. The three trained together under the instruction of Winterfell's master-at-arms Ser Robbard Locke. Milly wondered why Bael sometimes had study sessions with maester Dyron alone. But at times Milly and Errold, mostly Milly, would haul him away to adventures and mischiefs. Milly and Bael shared a special bond as orphans with no mothers (Bael’s real mother had also died). When Milly was 13, the boy she knew as Bael the Bookworm told her his true name was Valarr of House Targaryen, and that he loved her. When she was 14, one day, she overheard her grandfather and maester Dyron discussing the betrothal of Prince Valarr. The reality of Milly’s bastard nature and Valarr’s lineage hit her, and Milly ran away to the woods. Valarr ran after her. Both ended up stranded in the snow. Thinking that they would die of freeze, they said the words with the Old Gods as their witness. Eventually, Lord Brandon found his granddaughter and the prince, nearly frozen to death and in a questionable state. When they came back to Winterfell, he separated the two. That was the first time Milly saw her grandfather angry at her. He took Milly with him to a trip to The Three Sisters to marry one of his granddaughters to a Sunderland, while at the same time sent for Valarr’s sire to take him back to King’s Landing. No communication was allowed between Milly and Valarr. But when she received a letter from Errold, she was furious at her grandfather. She travelled on a different ship when they came back from Sweetsister. A violent storm came. Milly survived but her grandfather did not. Lord Brandon never forgave Milly’s father. On his last wish, he hoped Milly would never have to see the bastard. King's Landing After Lord Brandon’s funeral, Milly had to part with another of her loved ones as Errold set out for the Wall to join the Night’s Watch. Convinced that there was nothing left for her in the North and weary of the Stark family's politics, Milly, along with Ser Robbard, followed Valarr to King's Landing. She went under the name Mara, daughter of Ser Robbard Locke. Milly was not prepared to encounter the Targaryen clan and the court at King’s Landing. The high-born ladies at court thought she was too untamed and too northern. Lord Brynden Rivers, the Bloodraven, made her cold in the spine. She was uncomfortable with Prince Maekar Targaryen’s icy stare and she certainly would also want to see what would happen if his first son drank fire. But she was more at ease in the presence of Good King Daeron and Prince Baelor. The only friend she managed to make at court was 5 year-old Egg. Some time after Valarr came back to King's Landing, Prince Baelor inquired his son about the northern girl that accompanied him on his trip home, as Prince Baelor had grew a fond curiosity for the unruly spirited child. And he did not know how, but there was a familiarity to her face. Valarr decided to tell him the girl’s real name and even revealed his intentions. Prince Baelor was shocked to find out that not only had his son fallen in love with a bastard, but he would even think to ask King Daeron to legitimize the girl. When it became clear that Prince Baelor was strongly against the match, Valarr told his father that he and Milly had already said the words, and he considered her his wife. The only resolve now, he said with a finalised sense, would be to renounce his titles. Prince Baelor looked at his son like he had lost his mind. He wondered what in the Seven Gods name had happened to him at Winterfell. Prince Baelor dismissed the union, stating that the vows were said in the way of the Old Gods, not in front of the Seven, with no witnesses. And renouncing titles was out of the question. Afterwards, Prince Baelor summoned the Small council and asked to choose a bride for his son. Brynden Rivers stayed behind and told him the story of the Tourney of Riverrun. Before the tourney, Lord Medgar Tully invited his guests to a game of hunting, and Arsa Stark joined the company. Then she got lost in the woods. People searched for her, but only found Robyn Bolton’s corpse, half naked, with his throat slit open. Not many people noticed that Aegor Rivers, who had been present at the tourney, was also missing. The Bloodraven believed a bastard was born from that incident. He said the maester at Stone Hedge knew the truth. Prince Baelor immediately sent for the maester, and eventually learned the truth of the girl with the red birthmark on her right palm. Valarr upon hearing rumours of a search for the Young Prince's future bride, hurriedly seeked for Milly. Instead of having his worries eased by Milly, they had a big fight. Ever since they departed Winterfell, she had been avoiding him. Now it seemed that all the tensions were spilled out. Through the shouting and the frustration, Milly said quietly that Valarr was not bound by the words they said in the woods in Winterfell, and that hurt the prince. Three months after Prince Valarr came back to King’s Landing, King Daeron held a tourney to herald the end of a harsh winter, to celebrate the return of his grandson and heir, and to officially crown him a prince. Milly listed in the tourney as a mystery knight. Having had enough of court, and running out of hope for her future with Valarr, she decided to damn with it all and leave King’s Landing. But she lacked the funds for her journey, so she stole Ser Robbard's armour and tried her luck at the tourney. Mayhaps she could win a bag of coins from some knight, she thought. However, she suffered a great injury when the opposing knight aimed for her horse. The copper steed became wild and threw Milly off, knocking her unconcious. Days later, she woke up with a huge lump behind her head and a massive headache. At her feet, she saw Egg sleeping, and Valarr at his usual quiet self. Unbeknownst to Milly, Valarr had arranged for a ship to take him and Milly to Braavos before the crowning ceremony. But all hell broke loose when the mystery knight fell and the helm revealed an unconscious Milly. A few days later, Milly was surprised to see Prince Baelor pay her a visit. Although Prince Baelor had made sure that the maester stayed silent, he himself told Milly of her true forebear. Milly, although still shocked and skeptical of Prince Baelor’s claims, could not help but recall the words cried at her by a witch she met in the godswood outside of The Red Keep. She said Milly’s blood tasted like ice and fire, but the taste was wrong on her tongue. She saw in the future two flocks of dragons dancing. A red dragon would bring light to end the long night, while the black dragons would fall to their doom. She cried that Milly stank of death and sorrow, and wanted her gone. Milly wondered if the part about ice and fire truly meant her father was Aegor Rivers, the Bittersteel. She was perplexed about the second part. At first she thought the witch was talking about the Blackfyre Rebellion. But she said it was in the future. And what did she mean by “light to end the long night”? Somehow she thought the answer lay in finding Aegor Rivers. Prince Baelor had suggested as such when he broke Milly out of her trance. He told her to sail for Essos. He gave her the funds for her journey, and gifted her with a bastard sword of Valyrian steel. Milly named it Griever. The day Milly left King’s Landing, she left Valarr a letter, explaining that her place was not beside him on the Iron Throne. Valarr led a frantic search for her at Blackwater Bay, believing that she had set out for Essos. She once told him that she wanted to be a ranger at the Wall, or a hedge knight wandering Westeros, but since she was a girl, she might as well be a sellsword at the Free Cities. Meanwhile, Milly and Ser Robbard were on their way to Crackclaw Point. On the way, she heard whispers of a second rebellion. Milly and Ser Robbard were attacked by robbers, but luckily they survived. However, Ser Robbard’s shoulder injury festered and he died a few days later. Milly, now on her own and having spent a large sum on healing Ser Robbard, decided to stay in House Boggs as a maid and awaited her father. In 205 AC, in King's Landing, Valarr Targaryen was crowned prince and heir to the Iron Throne, after his father Prince Baelor. Nearly one year later, the girl who married him and one day to be queen of the Seven Kingdoms was Kiera of Tyrosh. Part II: Daughter of Doom The Second Blackfyre Rebellion In 206 AC, 10 years after the First Blackfyre Rebellion, Bittersteel crowned Daemon II Blackfyre and came back to finish what Daemon I had started. After the Battle of Hagen Hills, where the Targaryens lost to the Blackfyres, Milly found Valarr morbidly wounded. She nursed him back to consciousness. Valarr revealed that it was Bittersteel that delivered the nearly fatal blow. The Blackfyre army later caught Milly and Valarr and they were brought to the king and his general. She revealed her identity to Bittersteel, to the shock of everyone, including Valarr. Her father said that would not help the prince as he meant to execute Valarr. Milly begged her father to put him in a cell instead, arguing that a live prince was more valuable than a dead one. She prayed that the message she sent little Egg’s father had arrived at his hands. Prince Maekar’s army descended upon Bittersteel’s camp. They captured Daemon, Bittersteel and Milly. A council was held to determine their fates. It was decided that Daemon would spend the rest of his life in gaol in order to prevent his brother Haegon from taking his claims and raising banners. When it came to Bittersteel, Prince Maekar urged his brother to put him and that bastard girl of his to the sword. Prince Baelor instead decided to send Bittersteel to the Wall. As for Milly, she would live in exile at Bear Island. She asked to accompany her father on his way to the Wall, and the prince granted her wish. Milly said her goodbye to Valarr for the last time. Milly was supposed to part with her father at Eastwatch-by-the-sea, but her father’s men got to them before the black brothers. Aegor asked his daughter to come with him to Essos. Essos After arriving at Essos, Milly joined her father's mercenary company. In 208 AC, a conflict in Volantis broke out between the elephants and the tigers. Milly travelled there with The Golden Company under contract with the elephants. As Milly arrived at Volantis, she came upon the city's Red Temple. She heard the red priests’ preaching of the bringer of light and finally understood the second part of the witch’s prophecy. With the help of the company, the elephants emerged victorious. However, as the battle came to an end, Milly slew one of the leaders of the elephants, Garronar the Maneater. She was chastised by her father for her recklessness, the elephants banished The Golden Company from the city, but the people of Volantis quietly thanked her. Four months later, when magister Harlio Sanin was assassinated by the Volantenes, Myr and Tyrosh joined forces to wage war with Volantis. The Golden Company came to the service of Myr. As serjeant Garlan Flowers was speared down, Milly led the van in his stead on the assault on the Volantenes. Afterwards, she was named serjeant. Aegor planned to marry Milly to Haegon Blackfyre, the fourth son of Daemon I Blackfyre. He imposed the matter on her multiple times. One of those times, in a fit of anger, Milly told her father that his cause was doomed. She told him Azor Ahai, the bringer of light, would be born from Daeron’s line, not Daemon’s. Aegor dismissed it as pagan lies. In 209 AC, Valarr died in the Great Spring Sickness. Two months later, in Myr, Milly threw herself off a cliff. Physical appearance Black of hair. Blue eyes (but more purple in the dark). Tall and fair. Has a red birth mark on her right palm. Quotes by Milly "Aegor: "It is time for you to change your name" Milly: "My mother gave me my name when she gave birth to me. I was told you were there as well. You could have shared your objection." Aegor: "I'm referring to your last name, Snow" Milly: "And what would you have me change it to, father? Rivers? Blackfyre? Whatever it is, I'm still a bastard." - Milly to her father Aegor" "As Aegor continued the berating of his daughter without a sign of stopping, Milly's mind started to wander. She pondered to herself if the scowl on her father’s face was sculptured. But she bet it changed when Shiera Seastar was around. - Milly's thought" Valarr: "When I was in the cell, I had some time to think. I came to the conclusion that it matters not to me that you are a bastard or that your father is Aegor Rivers. But can you honestly say the same? Answer me truly." Milly: chokingly "No. No, I can't" - Valarr and Milly before she parted for Bear Island"' '''Quotes about Milly "Aegon: "Do you remember my cousin Valarr?" Ser Duncan: "Yes, we encountered briefly at Ashford." Dunk suddenly became lightheaded as he recalled the dream that sometimes still haunted his sleeps, the dream where the ghost of Valarr Targaryen came back and blamed Dunk for the death of his father. Aegon: "I admired him. Before we met, I wanted to squire for him." Dunk had no idea where the king was heading. He waited for the king to give him some clues. Aegon: "He, my cousin, was in love with Milly Snow. Did you know?" Ser Duncan: "Milly Snow, daughter of Bittersteel?" Aegon: "Yes. After she left, Valarr did not talk of her to anyone, except to me. He wanted to renounce his titles to marry her, but his father forbidded. How the times have turned. At times I wonder whether Milly and Valarr’s fate would be the same if his wish was granted." Then after a pause… Aegon: "Tell me Ser, what will my son think of me, what will become of him if I do the same thing as Prince Baelor?" Ser Duncan did not know the answer, and would not give an answer. - Tales of Dunk and Egg” "Jaime: "Women can’t be knights. It’s unnatural for a woman to wield a sword. Name me one who was such and I will shut up." Brienne: "Malery Snow, the Sword of Sorrow." Jaime: "She was not a knight, she was a sellsword. And she was much fairer too, I might add." - A Storm of Swords” “Harry Strickland’s mind wandered to the time when he was only a homeless-boy-turned-sellsword among others in the band of exiled sworn brothers. He heard they once had a woman among their ranks. Malery Snow. Malery the Cursed. Bittersteel’s spawn. Part of her foretold had come true, as they saw Maelys Blackfyre perish in the War of the Ninepenny Kings. “This boy that Griff called Aegon, son of Rhaegar, could he be the bringer of light that Malery mentioned?”, Harry mused. Whoever he was, he could be the one who brings the exiled brothers home. - A Dance with Dragons” “As Daenarys lit fire to the pyre under Ser Jorah’s body, she wondered whether her life was cursed like Milly Snow, since everyone she ever loved had died. “But she was born of bastard fire, and I am the prince that was promised”, Daenarys thought - The Winds of Winter” Trivia Milly narrated two of Histories & Lore videos "The Golden Company" 'and '"The She-Wolves of Winterfell" Family tree: House Stark [Yellow text: Lord of Winterfell Bold & Italic text: main characters] Category:Characters Category:Status: Dead Category:Deceased Category:Female Category:Hero Category:Warrior Category:Bastard Category:Characters from the North Category:Sellsword Category:Sellsword company Category:Titular characters Category:Fanon Characters Category:Tragic Characters Category:House Stark Category:House Targaryen Category:House Blackfyre Category:Prophecies